Martin Shkreli Lawsuit: Wu-Tang Clan Sample Copying
- The "pharma Bro" must contend with legal action stemming from unauthorized copies of the unique album,despite some claims being dismissed.
- Martin Shkreli, the former pharmaceutical executive known for drastically increasing the price of Daraprim and his subsequent conviction for securities fraud, will be allowed to face a lawsuit...
- Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was intentionally created as a single-copy album by the Wu-Tang Clan in 2015. The group partnered with Buying Luxury Brand (BLB) to...
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Shkreli Faces lawsuit Over Wu-Tang Clan’s “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin”
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The “pharma Bro” must contend with legal action stemming from unauthorized copies of the unique album,despite some claims being dismissed.
What Happened?
Martin Shkreli, the former pharmaceutical executive known for drastically increasing the price of Daraprim and his subsequent conviction for securities fraud, will be allowed to face a lawsuit brought by PleasrDAO, the collective that currently owns the Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. U.S. District Judge Pamela Chen ruled on Thursday, September 26, 2024, that while some claims were dismissed, the core allegation of “misappropriation of trade secrets” will proceed. The dispute centers around Shkreli’s creation of copies of the album after acquiring it in 2015.
The Unique History of “Once Upon a Time in shaolin”
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was intentionally created as a single-copy album by the Wu-Tang Clan in 2015. The group partnered with Buying Luxury Brand (BLB) to market the album as a unique collectible, explicitly designed *not* to be widely distributed. The intention was to challenge the conventional music industry model and create a valuable, singular art object. Shkreli purchased the album for $2 million at auction,publicly flaunting his acquisition.
Following Shkreli’s 2017 conviction, the album was forfeited to the U.S. government. It was later sold at auction to PleasrDAO for $4 million in 2021. PleasrDAO, a decentralized autonomous association (DAO), is a collective of cryptocurrency investors and art collectors. They have since displayed the album publicly in Tasmania, Australia, at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA).
Why “Trade Secrets”?
The core of the lawsuit hinges on the argument that the methods Shkreli used to copy the album constituted a misappropriation of trade secrets. While the album itself wasn’t a secret, the specific techniques and details required to duplicate it - including access to the original master recordings and the knowledge of how to create a faithful reproduction – are considered proprietary. Judge Chen’s ruling acknowledges that these methods could be protected under trade secret law.
This is a novel submission of trade secret law to an art object. Traditionally, trade secrets relate to industrial processes or confidential business information. Applying it to the reproduction of a unique album raises interesting questions about the definition of “trade secrets” in the digital age and the protection of artistic creations.